Bollocks of Leadership

[robinpen]

Convenor, it is on your head. Deal with it

A single person rarely brings the seed of a convention forth. Usually it forms itself in the air between three or four people, often while caught in a con induced high and within the loud din of a room party (A bad time to make such decisions - though far less conventions would happen if they weren’t). It

Comments

[txtriffidranch]

You've hit on one-half of the reason why the people in charge get the job. With half of them, it's because nobody else wanted the job, and they didn't get the warnings. With the other half, nobody else wanted the job, and they figured that being In Charge meant special dispensation and respect. It's a tough call as to which delusion makes things worse.

[angriest]

Does special dispension and respect include "I get to be in charge and tell you all what to do?"

[txtriffidranch]

No, it usually means "I'm going to leave the day-to-day operations to the flunkies, shove people out of the way when television cameras arrive at the show, take off for hours with the Guest of Honor, and piss all over the rest of the guests and attendees." It seems to work particularly well for American conventions.

[angriest]

Oh that, yeah I've totally seen that behaviour. Hopefully not from myself.

[angriest]

I have been on the core committee (as opposed to doing their video program) of three Swancons, and was co-convenor of one of them, and significantly that was the only one of the three I ultimately enjoyed doing.

Moral of the story? I'm an arrogant dictator-in-waiting who likes to be in charge.

[txtriffidranch]

Hey, no complaints, so long as everything ran well. My complaint has been against the con chairmen who had more in common with King Log than King Stork.

[stephbg]

I had the good fortune to be recruited into possibly the best, most cohesive, best led committee ever (SC2009). We hugged a lot and got things done, and even at the end we were better friends than before. It's not impossible, but it can be done.

[dalekboy]

I always tell con chairs that I see having problems the same thing. Don't be afraid to tell people to do their damned job, and don't be afraid to sack someone who doesn't do their job. If the con is a huge success, all those people will be up there standing beside you taking their share of the glory, if it's a failure, you'll be up there all alone.

The worst experience I've had on a con was the one the chair failed to sack the people who needed to be sacked, and the whole committee suffered.